Your source for reviews of film, concerts, and theatre from an unusual perspective -- the wheelchair seats.

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Friday, April 26, 2019

"Jesus Hopped the A Train" @ CoHo

I fell in absolute love with the writing of Stephen Adly Guirgus when I was introduced to it via Artists Rep's production of "The Motherfucker with the Hat", had it rekindled with "Between Riverside and Crazy", and now it continues with "Jesus Hopped the A Train." In my review of "Motherfucker" I described Guirgus's dialogue as "verbal sprints." That description holds true for "Jesus Hopped the A Train. This time, however, I was struck not only by the incredible speed, but by the dialogue's near-musicality. It's basically a symphony of profanity.

"Jesus Hopped the A Train" was one of a handful of shows I have anticipated from the beginning of the Season. it continues Coho's long tradition of presenting productions with minimalist-sets that let local actors take the well-deserved spotlight. In this, it's Bobby Bernea, as a serial-killing Christian Convert, of all things. I've said a version of the following in my reviews of Guirgus's work: it embodies the essence of the violent, visceral reasons I love the theatre. Plays like this are what I hope to see.